Possible Cooking Methods: Stovetop Pressure Cooker Slow Cooker 
This is essentially a New England clam chowder, but with more to love – two different types of fish as well as shrimp are added with the clams at the end to give the soup more bulk and interest. This is more of a wintery soup that is finished at the end with heavy cream. As with all my recipes, think of this as a template for what you’d like to make. If you’d like it a little lighter, you could add half-and-half instead of cream. It won’t be as rich, but it will still be a hearty meal. I think this is especially nice with fresh clams, but a good quality canned clam is an easy substitute. You can also substitute any fresh fish for the salmon and haddock – whatever floats your boat (so to speak!). Bottled clam juice can be found in the same aisle as the tuna in a grocery store – don’t feel compelled to use the liquid from a can of clams or you’ll end up buying more cans than you really need.
4 strips bacon, chopped
1 onion, finely chopped
2 ribs celery, finely chopped
3 cloves garlic, smashed
1 pound red potatoes, diced
4 sprigs fresh thyme
1 bay leaf
salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 cups chicken stock*
1 cup clam juice
½ cup clams (fresh, steamed and shelled are great, but frozen or canned is fine too)
8 to 10 ounces haddock, cut into 1-inch cubes
8 to 10 ounces salmon, cut into 1-inch cubes
6 ounces extra small shrimp
2 tablespoons cornstarch
1 cup heavy cream
1 to 2 teaspoons hot sauce (like Tabasco®) (optional)
mini oyster crackers
fresh dill weed
*Quantity changes for alternate methods
Stovetop Directions
Serves:6 to 8
Cooking Time:35 minutes
1. Pre-heat Dutch oven over medium-high heat.
2. Add the bacon and cook until the bacon is crispy and has rendered out most of its fat. Remove the bacon from the pot and set aside. Discard any excess fat, but leave at least 2 tablespoons in the pot. Add the onion and celery and sauté until the vegetables just start to soften – about 5 minutes. Add the garlic, potatoes, thyme and bay leaf and stir to coat with the fat. Cook for another minute or two and season with salt and freshly ground black pepper.
3. Pour in the chicken stock and clam juice and bring to a boil. Lower the heat to medium-low and simmer the chowder for 15 minutes, or until the potatoes are tender. Season to taste with salt and freshly ground black pepper.
4. Add the clams, fish and shrimp and simmer on low heat for another 5 minutes. While the fish is cooking, combine the cornstarch with 2 tablespoons of water. Stir the cornstarch slurry into the pot and bring the soup back to a boil to thicken. Stir in the heavy cream and season to taste with salt and hot sauce, if using.
5. Garnish the soup with the mini oyster crackers, some fresh dill weed and some of the chopped cooked bacon.
Additional Cooking Directions for
New England Fish Chowder
Pressure Cooker Directions
Serves:6 to 8
Cooking Time:25 minutes
Change Ingredients: Reduce stock to 1 cup
1. Pre-heat a 5- to 6-quart multi-function pressure cooker using the BROWN or SAUTE setting.
2. Add the bacon to the cooker and cook until the bacon is crispy and has rendered out most of its fat. Remove the bacon from the cooker and set aside. Discard any excess fat, but leave at least 2 tablespoons in the cooker. Add the onion and celery and sauté until the vegetables just start to soften – about 5 minutes. Add the garlic, potatoes, thyme and bay leaf and stir to coat with the fat. Cook for another minute or two and season with salt and freshly ground black pepper. (If your cooker doesn’t have a brown setting, brown the bacon on the stovetop in a skillet. The rest of the ingredients can go into the cooker raw.)
3. Pour in the chicken stock and clam juice. Cover and lock the lid in place.
4. Pressure cook on HIGH for 5 minutes.
5. Release the pressure using the QUICK-RELEASE method and carefully remove the lid. Add the clams, fish and shrimp and return the cooker to the BROWN or SAUTE setting. Simmer the fish for 4 minutes.
6. While the fish is cooking, combine the cornstarch with 2 tablespoons of water. Stir the cornstarch slurry into the cooker and bring the soup back to a boil to thicken. Stir in the heavy cream and season to taste with salt and hot sauce, if using.
7. Garnish the soup with the mini oyster crackers, some fresh dill weed and some of the chopped cooked bacon.
Slow Cooker Directions
Serves:6 to 8
Cooking Time:4½ to 5½ hours on LOW
Change Ingredients: Reduce stock to 1 cup
1. Pre-heat a 6-quart multi-function slow cooker using the BROWN or SAUTE setting.
2. Add the bacon to the cooker and cook until the bacon is crispy and has rendered out most of its fat. Remove the bacon from the cooker and set aside. Discard any excess fat, but leave at least 2 tablespoons in the cooker. Add the onion and celery and sauté until the vegetables just start to soften – about 5 minutes. Add the garlic, potatoes, thyme and bay leaf and stir to coat with the fat. Cook for another minute or two. (If your cooker doesn’t have a brown setting, brown the bacon on the stovetop in a skillet. The rest of the ingredients can go into the cooker raw.)
3. Pour in the chicken stock and clam juice. Cover and slow cook on LOW for 4 to 5 hours (2½ hours on HIGH).
4. Once the potatoes are tender, add the fish, shrimp and clams and slow cook on HIGH for 30 minutes, until the seafood is fully cooked.
5. Combine the cornstarch with 2 tablespoons of water. Stir the cornstarch slurry into the cooker and keep the cooker on HIGH for a few minutes to thicken the soup. Turn the cooker off and stir in the heavy cream. Season to taste with salt and hot sauce, if using.
6. Garnish the soup with the mini oyster crackers, some fresh dill weed and some of the chopped cooked bacon.
